जल प्रदूषण और स्वास्थ्य
Water Pollution and Health
Water pollution is the addition of harmful substances to water that make it unfit for use. Contaminated water is a leading cause of illness among Indian children, which is why this chapter links directly to hand washing, toilets and the mid-day meal in the same syllabus.
Causes of water pollution
- Sewage and toilet waste flowing into rivers and ponds.
- Washing clothes, bathing animals and cleaning vessels at the water source.
- Factory waste and chemicals released into rivers.
- Fertilisers and pesticides washed off fields by rain.
- Rubbish, plastic and religious offerings thrown into water bodies.
- Open defecation near a water source, which contaminates it directly.
Diseases spread by unsafe water
| Disease | Cause | Main sign |
|---|---|---|
| Diarrhoea | Contaminated water and food | Loose motions, dehydration |
| Cholera | Bacteria in contaminated water | Severe watery motions, rapid dehydration |
| Typhoid | Bacteria in contaminated water or food | Long fever, weakness |
| Jaundice or hepatitis | Virus in contaminated water | Yellow eyes and skin, tiredness |
| Dysentery | Contaminated water | Motions with blood or mucus |
| Malaria and dengue | Mosquitoes breeding in stored or stagnant water | Fever with chills; dengue causes body pain |
Note the difference: cholera and typhoid are carried in the water, while malaria and dengue are carried by mosquitoes that breed in standing water. Options mix the two, so keep the distinction clear.
Making water safe
- Boiling — the most reliable household method; boil for a few minutes and cool covered.
- Filtering — a clean cloth removes visible dirt; a candle or membrane filter does more.
- Chlorine tablets or bleaching powder — used in wells and during floods.
- Sedimentation — letting mud settle before decanting, often with alum.
- Storing water in a covered pot and taking it out with a long-handled ladle rather than dipping hands.
The school's part
Safe drinking water, working toilets, soap at the hand-washing point and covered storage are RTE Schedule requirements, not extras. A teacher who makes hand washing before the mid-day meal a routine prevents more illness than any lesson on germs — and CTET's answer to a question on this always chooses the daily practice over the poster.
✗ Malaria spreads by drinking dirty water. | ✓ Malaria spreads through mosquitoes that breed in stagnant water; cholera and typhoid spread through the water itself.
संकेत: हैजा और टाइफाइड दूषित जल पीने से; मलेरिया और डेंगू रुके हुए पानी में पनपने वाले मच्छरों से।
This topic gives one or two questions, usually a disease-cause matching item. The reliable trap is the malaria pair described above. Boiling as the most reliable purification method is asked directly. A pedagogy question often follows about how a teacher should promote safe water and hygiene, where the answer is establishing a daily routine such as hand washing before the mid-day meal, rather than displaying a chart or giving a talk.
Frequently asked questions
Which diseases are caused by drinking contaminated water?
Diarrhoea, cholera, typhoid, dysentery and jaundice are all spread through water contaminated by sewage or germs. Malaria and dengue are different — they spread through mosquitoes that breed in stagnant water.
What is the most reliable way to make water safe at home?
Boiling. Bringing water to a rolling boil for a few minutes kills the germs that cause most water-borne diseases, after which it should be cooled and stored in a clean covered container.
How can a school reduce water-borne illness?
By providing safe drinking water in covered storage, keeping toilets clean and usable, supplying soap, and making hand washing before the mid-day meal and after using the toilet a daily routine for every child.
60-second recap
- Pollution comes from sewage, industry, farming chemicals, rubbish and open defecation.
- Water-borne: diarrhoea, cholera, typhoid, dysentery, jaundice.
- Mosquito-borne from stagnant water: malaria and dengue.
- Boiling is the most reliable household purification method.
- Daily hand washing before the mid-day meal prevents more illness than any lesson.
Ab isi chapter ke questions CTET Paper 1 mock test me practice karo — water aur health ke sawaal wahin milenge.